Step one: let the petty tyrants sue you.Step two: seek attorneys fees when you bounce their frivolous suit right out of court.Step three: record the judgment for attorneys fees and slap a lien on their house.Step four: LOL.

If we find/discover you have mentioned Stonecreek in any legal matter their (sic) will be action toward yourself as well as any print paper you represent in the media article.

Lulz.

My mom's HOA is pretty bad. Not the rules, but the leaders. It's been a succession of little dictators pretty much since she's been there. But, I have become tone deaf to her complaints. She won't get involved - go to meetings, attempt to vote out the Napoleons, etc. And she's pretty much fully retired now. I agree they're terrible, but if she won't even try do to anything I just can't get all exercised over it.

That's the real puzzling part. I don't get what the upshot is. I suppose if you REALLY loved conformity and wanted to live in a neighborhood where the houses all look the same. Can't really see why it would appeal to anyone. I've got a pickup truck without plates in my yard just for driving around on my property, I've got two septic tanks still in the ground, I cut my grass when the mood strikes me. I wouldn't last a week in an HOA environment.

I've lived in an HOA, it was an outrage! My property value didn't go down, my neighbors weren't allowed to park their broke down cars on the front lawn and I wasn't even able to call the cops on my neighbors for them not blasting music into the wee hours of the morning.

Diogenes:I don't know what it's like elsewhere, but here in Central Florida (and I believe the majority of the rest of the state) you can't avoid them. You'd never find a house if you won't accept an HOA.

Mine is OK. Which is surprising because we have alot of cranky old folks.

You seriously can't, even in rural areas? It's much the opposite here, I've never heard of any HOAs here, at least not in any of the old towns, maybe some newer developments have them.

Elzar:I've lived in an HOA, it was an outrage! My property value didn't go down, my neighbors weren't allowed to park their broke down cars on the front lawn and I wasn't even able to call the cops on my neighbors for them not blasting music into the wee hours of the morning.

The alley behind my house is strewn with vehicles in various states of operation and disrepair. What's so offensive about broken down cars? Typically they get cut up and sold for scrap in short order anyway, what with the price of scrap iron through the roof these days. I'll take my freedom, thanks anyway. No one gets to tell me what to do with my property.

Hess, who identifies himself as president, treasurer and legal agent of the Stonecreek HOA

That seems like a conflict of interest...

My parent's HOA wasn't too bad. They sure pissed my mom off when she apparently didn't paint her mailbox an "approved color", but she was happy when they made the people down the street re-paint the trim of their house after deciding to go with a godawful pink color. And they also made the guy a couple streets down take down his Christmas decorations cause it was early April. Apprently his wife left him after the holidays or something and that was one of the few things that made him happy. But it was a little excessive (like 5 giant inflatables). He moved 'em into his garage and still inflates them.

scottydoesntknow:They sure pissed my mom off when she apparently didn't paint her mailbox an "approved color", but she was happy when they made the people down the street re-paint the trim of their house after deciding to go with a godawful pink color.

dahmers love zombie:I like how the news site's very next line after reprinting the "don't use the name Stonecreek" email was:

'A powerful tool'

LOL.

Yeah, I love that little "coincidental" heading. Hess does appear to be an appalling pissant of a person.

However, that's what you get when you sign into an HOA - the very real possibility of being forced not just to keep your property in a certain manner, but actually told how you should live portions of your life, too.

If you're stupid enough to sign onto an HOA, you deserve everything you get, honestly. I find it bizarre that HOAs are still prevalent enough, given their abuses over the last two decades, to warrant regular Fark postings about some new petty tyranny related to them.

That's the real puzzling part. I don't get what the upshot is. I suppose if you REALLY loved conformity and wanted to live in a neighborhood where the houses all look the same. Can't really see why it would appeal to anyone. I've got a pickup truck without plates in my yard just for driving around on my property, I've got two septic tanks still in the ground, I cut my grass when the mood strikes me. I wouldn't last a week in an HOA environment.

The benefit is that all that conformity causes the property values to go up, or at least not down so much when bad things happen. When your neighbor can't take care of his shiat, it drives down the value on the whole block, so they go after members who drag the carcasses of late model cars up onto their yards and the ones who let their grass get a little shaggy.

I'm not saying that it's worth it, but if you're the kind of person who wants absolute control over every aspect of your life, it might be.

"Furthermore, this notice also requires you not to at any measure mention anything regarding my name, any resident of Stonecreek, NOR will we ALLOW any of your printing in any article regarding Stonecreek at any time in any publication,"

Elzar:I've lived in an HOA, it was an outrage! My property value didn't go down, my neighbors weren't allowed to park their broke down cars on the front lawn and I wasn't even able to call the cops on my neighbors for them not blasting music into the wee hours of the morning.

I live in a village within a town, and Village Hall enforces various code violations where they make sense, but are not dicks about it.

They actually do a better job than HOAs. I've snickered out loud at HOA members in Village Hall meetings, even glared at once by one of them over something extremely stupid the HOA was charging him for.

Elzar:I've lived in an HOA, it was an outrage! My property value didn't go down, my neighbors weren't allowed to park their broke down cars on the front lawn and I wasn't even able to call the cops on my neighbors for them not blasting music into the wee hours of the morning.

I know I mean who wants to get to know their neighbors? To discuss with them like rational adults about neighborhood concerns like broken down cars and loud music. No better to sign away your rights and have other people enforce codes so you can continue to be the farking coward you are.